Bulgaria's shameful silence on the Roma issue

EU Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding has launched into battle with France over its expulsion of Roma, but Bulgaria still hasn't adopted a clear position on the Roma issue, the daily Novinar complains: "While Bucharest lost no time in adopting a sharper tone towards Paris and insisting that the rights of the deported Romanian citizens be upheld, all that came from Sofia was a deafening silence. The few leading politicians who had the courage to take a stance stuttered like first graders and tried to keep everyone happy. Reding's tough stance is all the more impressive in the context of this spineless behaviour. Basically she did what our government should have done long ago: bang on the table and make it clear that our Roma are not just Bulgarian but also EU citizens, and as such have rights, including protection against discrimination."

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